Talk About a Good Neighbor!

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter.  

A ”neighborhood handyman” in Waco, Texas receives a new roof after his neighbor realizes the condition of his home and reaches out to the community to help him. 

Good neighbors are hard to come by, but not in this neighborhood in Waco. James Macwhorter is known as the neighborhood handyman; he will fix just about anything for his neighbors. "Everybody in this neighborhood, the three or four block radius, I pretty much know them," James told KXXV.  

"Anything that anyone needs, he is there," said his next-door neighbor of 20 years, Carmen Merritt. Busy fixing other people’s homes, James neglected to take care of his own home, and his roof was in bad shape. 

Carmen noticed one night how bad his home had gotten, "I saw something scurry into the roof and then I really noticed and observed the state of that area and I thought this is not okay," she said. She took to the Nextdoor app, posting to see if anyone would be willing to donate some services, and help from the Waco community came flooding in.  

The community came together to fix James’ roof and help make other home improvements. On top of that, money was donated to provide him with a year of bug extermination services.  

"You just don't really know how much it's appreciated, especially when you get to a certain age. You think you still know how to do it all, you want to do it all, but you can't," says James. 

James believes he has been blessed by God with such great neighbors. It is clear that his kindness and years of being a good neighbor paid off.  James says, "I always believe one thing can lead to another, and that's the way it's done."  

Do you know of someone in the industry who is ‘doing good deeds’ in their community? Help us catch them at it. Send news and information to info@rooferscoffeeshop.com.

Photo credit: MMJ5